Manual airline reservations prior to computers!

Life before we had computers... Brian, my husband, and JL, my son-in-law, speak of the development of the reservations system in the airline industry. Before computers: who can imagine this? It involves stickers and is almost as bad as communicating with tin cans. It involves clothespins and early computer development. Jean-Luc, our son-in-law and a software encryption engineer, speaks about NORAD taking over the technology developed by the airlines, to assist them when computers were first invented.
Hubby joined the airline in 1979 at the data centre.
People remembered when customers would phone in, have the outline of the airline on stickies.
When you booked a seat they put the sticky on particular seats, and put the others onto a cardboard piece of paper onto a clothespin where it went onto a clothesline and into central source in another office.

Pneumatic Tube internal mail system, Commerce Bank ca. 1931

Flights were written in long hand, page after page. Every page added by day, week, month and year by column. Senior management were young, in their 30s, personal computers were so new that they though that two people could share a computer. These were dumb terminals, not PCs. They were at the forefront of the industry, using large data systems. The first sale of a computer was to American Airlines. IBM sold it, after talking to an AA senior president. They thought the market for computers was about five. The first discount airline was having the carriers for breakfast, as they could manage sales. American invented inventory control. Now used for hotels, airlines and drove Peoples Airline out of business.

Then, I found this one.

Now, you can track a flight online.

Lanark County transportation - photo contrasts

On the road again...

Not really, but I have some fun photos I want to share. What a busy time driving across our province.

On our big drive across south eastern Ontario and back, I had fun spotting great vehicles and means of transportation. We covered so many kilometres, that it kept me busy.


There are a lot of vacationers on the roads. All hell bent on getting here or there. In a hurry!


We were driving south along Rama Road, enjoying the fact that the traffic was headed north and we were headed south. The cars were fun to watch.

I recall George Carlin's monologue on 'STUFF', how you go somewhere and you take your stuff, some stuff, not all your stuff.

When you take a bus or plane, you have carry-on. (At least that is the theory - some passengers take EVERYTHING on!)

When you travel by car you are less limited.

When you travel in a camper there are creative ways to bring your STUFF.

Don't you love it?

Bring mini transportation. What a great idea! Better than bikes for the adults.

But, then, there are others who have to bring a trailer. This person was going a long distance.



Apparently, Mexico-US-Canada. It is the Cole Choken Cancer Run. We spotted him in Kaladar, on July 17.

www.colechokencancerrun.com/

I'd never heard of him. I wish him well.
I still believe that I can do more by volunteering in person, sitting with someone, or driving them to appointments, than by raising money for such a cause.

I know where my time and energy goes: directly to a human being. There is so much to having direct services.

That is my preferences, especially with the Pink Ribbon, Inc. machine that has hijacked the cancer cause.

Choken provides on his website: "interviews with victims, survivors and current battlers."<

Not all my Hospice clients see themselves as victims. They see themselves as people who need someone. And we get so much back from helping another person.
But, back to my travels...

 Not all people can pack succinctly.
Perhaps, many cannot park succinctly! Not with this little hanger-on.
I loved the sight of this camper. Little car hanging on behind.
If you look closely, you can read the bumper sticker! 'Be patient with me. I'm pushing a big motorhome.'